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Selling holiday greenery on the same Glendora street corner for 65 years, the Morelli family knows about cut Christmas trees and how the tree business has changed over the years.

For instance, back in the old days, Christmas trees were often scrawny.

“People would have to buy two and tie them together,” chuckled Tony Morelli, the third-generation owner of Tony Morelli’s Farm Market, a business founded by his grandfather Antonio in the late 1940s.

Today Christmas trees are raised on Christmas tree farms where they are sheared and pampered to produce a lush fullness. Morelli’s modern trees are perfectly formed, with heights ranging from four to 15 feet.

Today, people do not limit their display of cut Christmas tree to the inside of their homes only.

“We sell big trees and people actually put them on their lawns,” said Tony, 58.

Frannie Calabrese has nine-foot ceilings in her Williamstown home, so she wanted a tall tree, but one that was full too. On a gray, drizzly day in early December, she found what she wanted at Morelli’s.

“It’s a big, fat one,” the customer said with satisfaction, referring to the tree bundled in plastic, protruding from the back of the family pickup truck. “I like the fact that it’s real, too.”

The Morellis sell 1,000 Christmas trees each season. They purchase Douglas firs from a farm near State College, Pa. Their Fraser firs are raised in North Carolina.

The Christmas season is important to the Morelli’s business and its bottom line.

In addition to trees, the family sells an array of holiday florals, Christmas grave markers, handmade grave blankets, wooden Nativity scenes, and other lawn and home décor.

For the Morellis, the Christmas tree season begins during the hot summer months. Douglas firs — their best sellers — are hand-picked and tagged in the field by Tony and his son Vincent.

“We look for fullness, height and health,” said Vincent, 24. “It takes us all day. We leave (for the Pennsylvania farm) at 4 a.m. and don’t get home until night.”

Closer to Christmas, each tree is freshly cut and arrives in Glendora during Thanksgiving week.

At the farm market, a machine is used to drill a tapered bore hole into each trunk at the cut end. This makes it easy for customers to set up the tree at home on a “pin” stand — no more frustration with tilted trees.

The custom of flocking trees — applying fake snow to tree branches — is not as popular as it once was, the family says.

“We used to do pink, blue and even black flocking. But that has faded out,” said Vincent.

But not entirely.

“A week before Halloween, we got a call from a guy from Philly who asked for a pink tree,” said Cindy Morelli, Tony’s wife. “The family had a baby girl during the year, so they wanted pink.”

Flocking a tree is laborious business, according to Vincent. But with extra pink flocking on hand, Vincent applied it to five additional trees — and each one sold. The family also sells a number of white flocked trees annually.

Although customs have changed, Christmas tree prices have remained stable during recent years. The average tree at Morelli’s sells for about $45 and stands seven to eight feet high. Fifteen-footers can be purchased for $99.

Customers tend to buy trees during the first and second weekend in December, Tony notes. But, Thanksgiving week purchases are becoming more common, too.

“People are getting them earlier and earlier. I guess it’s the cost involved. They want to get their enjoyment out of it,” he said.

The Morellis know they are competing for business with the Walmarts of the world, so they make tree shopping at their garden center an appealing experience. Garden center buildings are lit with colored lights and holiday songs fill the crisp December air through a sound system. Customers who purchase trees get candy canes.

This year, the company is offering free delivery of trees within a five-mile radius.

As a third-generation owner of the garden center, Tony remembers the old days when his grandfather was proprietor and Christmas trees sold for $5 to $10.

Sweeping up was one of Tony’s earliest chores.

“I would come over for lunch from St.Teresa’s School and Grandpop would have a broom for me. My grandmom and grandpop lived in the house next door, so there was always something good cooking.

“There have been very good memories. If not for this business, I don’t know what I would be doing,” said Tony. “It’s all I know, but I enjoy being out here with all the people.”

With cosmetics, costuming, and just the right pose, a Haddonfield artist transforms ordinary South Jersey women into hot babes — and then photographs the delightful results.

The owner of Bombshell Pinups, Mandy Little once worked as a model and a Marilyn Monroe impersonator.

Today, the Mount Ephraim woman, 39, makes a living by applying makeup and arranging hair for other women. She then photographs them in glamor poses reminiscent of 1940s pin-up girls.

It’s an indulgence that lifts the spirits of clients and makes them feel sexy and confident.

“Sometimes you just need a little boost,” said the artist, explaining the popularity of her studio, now in its fifth year, and in Haddonfield since September 2011.

“Our clients are usually women who want to give their husband or boyfriend a birthday gift or a random surprise,” said Little, a statuesque blonde with perfect makeup, colorfully tattooed arms and a penchant for wearing pink.

Most of Little’s glamor clients are women ages 25-35, but other females in their 40s, 50s and 60s are game for flirtatious fun, too.

Most clients come in by word-of-mouth, or by passing by the Haddon Avenue storefront. In the past year, Little has conducted more than 100 photo shoots.

“Women will do this for their own birthdays, or to get together with their girlfriends to have a little party,” she said. “Sometimes, clients are overcoming something, such as weight loss, or they are going through a divorce. Some of our clients are coping with cancer.”

Mark Ramos, a soldier stationed in Iraq, flipped when his wife, Kath, sent him her Bombshell Pinup photos over the Internet.

Ramos could hardly believe his eyes. The woman he was seeing was his own “hot wife.”

“I told her to go out and have some more photos taken,” Ramos wrote on the Bombshell Pinups website. “I’m hooked!”

But pin-up photography is just one segment of Bombshell’s business.

Two beautiful portraits on display in the studio are of pregnant woman, each baring a prominent tummy. One woman lies cradled in a bed of colorful flowers, gracefully posed in a long sheath outfit, gazing downward at her exposed belly.

Little also does zombie- and horror-themed pinups, and on the softer side, photographs people with their pets. In 2007, she participated in an animal rescue fundraiser called “Pinups for Pitbulls,” a calendar featuring glamor girls and their pooches.

“Pink Ribbon Pinups” is Little’s current charitable collaboration, a project that will culminate in a calendar or coffee table book featuring pin-up girls — all cancer survivors.

The Haddonfield business is becoming the go-to place for couples or families looking to pose for holiday portraits with a twist. Bombshell provides elaborate retro or fantasy settings for backgrounds. This year, the backgrounds will be tiki Christmas, Santa’s workshop, and a set for Mr. and Mrs. Claus.

Many families reproduce their portraits on Christmas cards.

The Gentry family of Bellmawr used the studio’s retro kitchen with pink refrigerator and ruffled voile curtains for the background of their Christmas portrait. Mom Stephanie and daughters Emme and Ava, all decked out in red, baked Christmas cookies, while Dad Ed sat at the kitchen table, reading a newspaper.

Other non-seasonal backgrounds include a Victorian parlor, and an “Alice in Wonderland” scene with tea cups, white rabbits, and mushrooms.

“What I enjoy is creating dramatic scenes for people to be in. That is the fun part of it,” said Mandy, who finds furniture, props and costuming on Craigslist. Her husband, Michael, 37, builds the sets.

“Since we tend to have repeat customers, we try to have new sets all the time,” she said.

Other standard scenes include the classic boudoir with vanity, hand-held mirrors, fancy telephone, and perfume bottles.

Little is self-taught in photography, but her acquired set of skills can make any woman look like a glamor queen.

“I’m asked that all the time — can I make anyone look good? I’m amazing with hair. I’ve had women cry when I first turn them toward the mirror.

“I try to get the lighting just perfect,” she said.

After primping her clients, Little coaches them on facial expression and gesture. The hair and makeup application as well as the photo shoot takes about two hours.

If a hand or foot is a few inches off, she will retake the photo. With her easy manner, Little puts skittish clients at ease.

“You’re standing here in your lingerie in front of a perfect stranger. Of course you are going to feel strange,” Little acknowledges.

But the testimonial page on the company website bears witness to Little’s artistry, patience and skill.

“I was so nervous, but she made me mellow out,” wrote client Angelina, who said she will be using Bombshell Pinups again.

When Suzanne Umba told the Courier-Post about her disabled son Casey on May 29, she received support from an unexpected source.

The Rotary Club of Runnemede-Bellmawr-Glendora prides itself on a commitment to service above self. The group has supported a number of good causes in local communities over a 50-plus-year existence.

“I had no idea that the Rotary Club’s main purpose was to help people,” Umba said.

Nine-year-old Casey Umba was born with a rare chromosome disorder that has left him physically disabled, and unable to walk or talk.

“We got a tricycle designed specifically for Casey’s needs,” says Gina Anguilla, treasurer of the Runnemede-Bellmawr-Glendora Rotary. “It will help him with his physical development, and mentally make him feel like any other kid just to ride a bike.”

Suzanne Umba came to a Rotary luncheon to thank the group for Casey’s bike, and mentioned that one of the last things she needed for Casey’s care was a handicapped accessible van. “I couldn’t get approved for a loan to get one from the state,” she noted.

In stepped the Rotary Club. “One of our members volunteered to purchase the van for her in the name of the Rotary Club,” Anguilla said.

“Our small club has some really great members who are dedicated to serving people and doing good work in the community. She’s such a sweet lady, and her son is just adorable.

“We had the opportunity to meet them because we were touched by the Courier-Post article.”

“I started crying, it was unbelievable,” Umba said. “It’s a $63,000 purchase.”

Umba said her new van has an in-forward power ramp. “I push a button and the ramp slides out, and the whole van actually kneels on one side,” she explained. “I just push him in and lock the wheelchair and stroller down.

“Now he’s going to have more of a life because I don’t have to leave him home when I don’t have the energy to lift him. It’s like a miracle.”

Anguilla wanted people to know that the Rotary Club is looking for more opportunities to help the community. “We’ve been trying to identify specific needs, and we’ve done that through efforts with the Runnemede and Bellmawr school districts,” she said.

The Rotary Club supports families in the region through ShopRite gift cards. “Shop-Rite is a huge contributor to our club,” Anguilla said. “We’re so appreciative of the help from the schools and ShopRite.”

The van came at an opportune time for Umba, because Casey had been on steroids for colitis.

“We have to talk about other options of more serious medication to get it under control,” she said. “He’s been on back-to-back six-week courses of prednisone, which makes him gain weight, and it’s been really tough for me to lift him.”

Umba said it’s been hard to completely feel the joy from getting the van because of worrying about Casey’s colitis. “The drugs they’re talking about putting him on are powerful, with dangerous possible side effects.”

She admitted the experience has taken a toll on her physically. “I’m totally blessed and grateful, but it’s really been a stressful couple of years,” she acknowledged. “The colitis is really horrible, and really scary.”

Umba is thrilled with her new van, but her insurance costs have more than doubled. She lives on child support, Supplemental Security Income for Casey, and some food stamps. “My main thing is health,” she said. “If I can feel better, and Casey’s colitis can go into remission, I’m happy.”

Meanwhile, the Rotary Club is keeping a full schedule. “This year we had our 15th annual golf outing in May at the Wedgewood Country Club,” said Anguilla.

Harvest for Hunger was Nov. 1 at Cathedral Kitchen to help feed the homeless, and the group just had its inaugural 5K run. Suzanne Umba was a participant.

“We’re going to help the Rotary with their fundraisers,” said Umba. “I’m going to bring Casey to a meeting in the van so they all can meet him.”

The Rotary also help support Triton Regional High School’s efforts to send packages to the troops, and offers scholarships to Triton students.

“And we give holiday items to some of the tenants at Franklin Square Village, an elderly, independent living development in Glendora,” said Anguilla.

“We do a lot. We really do.”

–Bob Holt / Photo by Jose F. Moreno

The Runnemede-Bellmawr-Glendora Rotary Club meets Wednesdays at 12:15 pm at Runnemede Inn and Suites, 109 Ninth Ave. in Runnemede. For more information, call (856) 296-4611.

You can donate to the Casey Umba Fund by mail at P.O. Box 84, Barrington, N.J. 08007.

When you begin your holiday shopping this weekend, do yourself and your hometown a favor. Spend a few bucks at the independently owned shops and small businesses where you live.

That is the message of Small Business Saturday, a national movement encouraging consumers to focus on “small” and “local” as the holiday shopping season kicks off.

Now in its third year, Small Business Saturday is held on the day following Black Friday, the largest single shopping day of the year and a time set aside by many consumers for hitting the big box stores and malls.

On Saturday, the national movement hopes to redirect the focus to “small.”

Haddonfield, with its array of little shops, is playing up Small Business Saturday on its website, shophaddonfieldnj.com. Forty businesses are advertising Small Business Saturday discounts, two-for-one offers and other specials.

Haddonfield jewelry store owner Judith McNelis, of McNelis and Sherry, will offer items that she has been saving for years. These will include “a gorgeous gold necklace with an antique cameo,” she said.

“We’ve raided the store vault and brought out my favorite pieces. I’m thinking, maybe I can’t hold onto these any longer. I’m offering them at special prices to customers who like my taste. We’re calling them ‘Judi’s Picks.’”

Millions of people shopping “small” can pay off huge, according to the credit card company American Express, founder of Small Business Saturday, first held in 2010.

Thriving small businesses encourage entrepreneurs to create more hometown jobs and invigorate the local economy, the company says.

The consumer also benefits because one-of-a-kind stores often offer unique merchandise. Also, local shopkeepers have a vested interest in treating their customers well — and that can make holiday shopping pleasant rather than painful.

“I think people benefit from doing business with small shops because they get better customer service,” said Josh Steinberg, of Lavender Cottage, a Haddonfield home décor and gift store he owns with his wife, Heather.

Lavender Cottage, in business for only four months, will discount its total inventory 15 percent during Small Business Saturday.

Since 2010, response to the Small Business Saturday initiative has grown. Last year, more than 100 million shoppers supported the day by spending money locally, according to American Express.

The initiative also has boosted public awareness about small business from 37 percent to 65 percent since 2010, the credit card company said.

AmEx also reports that Small Business Saturday transactions increased 23 percent between 2010 and 2011. The company said 87 percent of Americans believe that the success of small businesses is important for the economic growth of the country.

There is a social as well as economic component to shopping local, said Linda Hackley, president of the Gloucester Township Business Association. The sprawling Black Horse Pike community is just beginning to organize its business association, which plans to start regular monthly meetings in January.

“To know that local businesses appreciate your business is the glue that will keep our towns together and prosperous,” she said. “It gives individuals a sense of community that is so lacking today.”

“No matter what community you are in, you want to keep your local shops in business. Then, you will have a more vibrant community and you will avoid the empty storefronts and dirty sidewalks.”

For business districts wishing to ramp up Small Business Saturday for next year, Cagno suggests planning and collaborating now. For the idea to take root, it only takes one or two businesses to earnestly embrace it, he said.

“Each downtown business should have literature or signage (in advance of the event.) They need to add a tag line,” Cagno said.

“Some (planning) falls on the town, the local businesses and the social media as well. But once you get one or two businesses doing it, the idea becomes connected and viral,” he said.

Individual small businesses, acting alone, can attract Small Business Saturday customers through signage and advertised specials promoting the day on company Web pages, Facebook and Twitter, according to business experts.

According to the Camden County website, “If each household in Camden County transitions just $10 per month of their out-of-county retail spending to in-county spending, the economic benefit to the county would be approximately $35 million per year.”

Two local barbers are doing their best to resurrect a longtime institution on Kings Highway in Haddonfield.

MirAno’s Barber Shop recently held its grand opening, but George Miraglia explains that he and his partner Joe Graziano probably never would have started their own business if the owner of their previous shop, Frank Montemurro, were still around.

Frank’s Men’s Hair Styling was an institution in Haddonfield for more than 30 years. Miraglia worked there for 11 years, and Graziano was employed for 14. Montemurro died suddenly on June 11, 2011.

“As barbers, we never really needed to look to open our own place because Frank treated us so well there,” Miraglia recalls. “We had a lot of love for the place because of Frank.”

So did much of the community. Memorials, cards and flowers appeared in front of the shop for days after word got around about Montemurro’s passing.

After Montemurro’s death, the remaining barbers wanted to keep his operation going. Frank’s Men’s Hair Styling reopened five days afterward on June 16, but Miraglia says things weren’t the same, and the staff went through a lot of hard times.

“It was a tough time for us when Frank passed away. Everybody there was on the same page, but we all just wanted a new start, basically.

“Joe and I took the reins and opened up this place.”

They got that fresh start when the Mazzez shoe store on Kings Highway closed its doors after eight months in business. That store had been painted purple inside and out, but after a lot of work, it was finally transformed into MirAnos.

The two barbers came up with the name of MirAnos by combining the first three letters of Miraglia’s last name with the last three letters of co-owner Graziano’s last name.

Miraglia felt their grand opening went well. The event featured fun and games for the kids, and of course, a barbershop quartet.

“It was excellent,” Miraglia says. “Some of our customers found out about it, and the weather was perfect.”

Miraglia says MirAnos has been doing well so far. They have put the names of barbers on a sign in the front window in an effort to notify its customers from Frank’s of their new business.

In a nod to its, ahem, roots, MirAnos Barber Shop includes six vintage 1966 Kokken rare matching barber chairs, and a 100-year-old barber pole out front.

“It’s a barbershop, we have all walk-ins, and no appointments,” Miraglia explains. “We cut men’s and boys’ hair.”

Some of those customers at Frank’s Men’s Hair Styling included members of the Phillies and Flyers who live in the Haddonfield area, according to Miraglia. Flyers play-by-play announcer Jim Jackson was a regular customer at Frank’s, and has returned to MirAnos.

Also returning to the new barbershop are Kim Haggard, who worked with Montemurro for 16 years, along with Frank’s staffers Rich Norris and Stacey Eisenger.

Montemurro, 56, lived in Berlin for 21 years. He was a very popular figure around Haddonfield, and also for miles around, according to Miraglia. “Everybody in town knew Frank,” he remembers. “He was a true gentleman, and a very likeable guy.

“And he had a clientele that extended from Atlantic City to Philadelphia that came to our barbershop.

“Frank was our mentor, he was a father figure. We loved Frank. We would have done anything for him.”

There’s a long barbershop tradition on Kings Highway. Miraglia says that even before Montemurro’s 30-plus years in business, his location had housed another barbershop, called Joseph’s.

And with MirAnos, the tradition is likely to continue.

“It’s very cut and dried what we do,” Miraglia said.

– Bob Holt / Photos by Chris LaChall

MirAnos Barber Shop is at 228 East Kings Highway in Haddonfield. No appointment necessary. Hours are 8 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday; and from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday.

For more information, call (856) 520-8694, or visit miranosbarbershop.com.

Interested in some early holiday shopping or simply an enjoyable night out with the girls?

Join the Collingswood Junior Women’s Club for Ladies’ Night Out on Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Collingswood Community Center.

For $3 admission, the BYOB event offers appetizers, desserts and soft drinks, as well as parking and a raffle ticket. The food is courtesy of the Collingswood Juniors, a local chapter of the New Jersey State Federation of Women’s Clubs, which encourages volunteerism.

Event chairperson Michelle Miller, vice president of the Collingswood Juniors, created the event and introduced it last year. It drew a crowd of more than 100 women.

Miller says the night of shopping and socializing will feature vendors selling an array of products, including Scentsy, Arbonne, Stella & Dot, Thirty-One Bags and Tupperware, to name a few. The raffle prize will be a Coach handbag.

Proceeds from the event will benefit a variety of local charities as well as the Essex County-based Valerie Fund, for children with cancer or blood disorders.

“Ladies’ Night Out is also a way for women to learn about our group,” says Miller, a member for four years. “It’s fun, you can meet new people and see many others you haven’t seen in a long time.”

The Collingswood Juniors partake in a number of community-oriented activities and campaigns, such as Fight Like a Girl Night, Dress for Success, the Collingswood Fall Festival and the annual Santa Brunch.

–Jan L. Apple

Ladies’ Night Out is Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Collingswood Community Center, 30 W. Collings Ave. Admission is $3.

For more information on the Collingswood Junior Women’s Club or Ladies’ Night Out, contact Michelle Miller at (856) 229-6976 or tupperwaremichelle@gmail.com

A concept that started as a virtual microbrewery on the Internet has outgrown its home in Cherry Hill. The Flying Fish brewery that began just off Exit 4 of the New Jersey Turnpike has moved down to Exit 3 and Somerdale.

“We finally got our federal approval,” announced Flying Fish President and founder Gene Muller. “We already had the state and the town approval, so that was the last piece of the puzzle.”

Flying Fish plans to open its doors to its new neighbors on Somerdale Day, this Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 900 Kennedy Blvd.

“We’re going to do our first public tours for Somerdale Day,” said Muller. “Somerdale Day is going to be in front of our brewery, so we’ll open up that day and let the public take a peek.”

Flying Fish announced its move to Cooper Towne Center in November 2011. The company that Muller began on the Internet in 1995 is moving into a facility that is more than triple the size of its Cherry Hill building.

“Our building backs up to where the movie theater is on the edge of the Cooper Towne Plaza,” said Muller. “We’ve already added about five people, and once we get up and running, we’ll probably add some more.”

The new facility will have a brewing kettle that can accommodate 50 barrels of beer, instead of the current 25-barrel kettle, and the fermentation tanks will be able to take on 150 barrels, instead of the 50 barrels in Cherry Hill.

Flying Fish is also trying to make its new facility as green and sustainable as possible, featuring passive solar lighting and a rain garden. “We’ve got a lot of active solar, we’ve got energy efficient lighting, and a boiler,” added Muller.

The company’s new boiler works on demand, and requires much less natural gas than the old model. And the new roof has about three times the insulation of the old building.

Flying Fish added a rain garden that should catch about 15 percent of the rainwater that falls on the roof and send it back into the earth.

At the same time, Flying Fish is focusing on getting legislation signed by Gov. Christie repealing strict state laws limiting how brewing companies can sell alcohol.

According to Muller, the legislation has something for both brew pubs and production breweries.

“The legislation will allow production breweries like us to sell up to a half-keg of beer when you walk in the door,” said Muller. “Right now we can only sell you up to two six-packs. It will also allow us to sell you beer after a tour.”

He added that the brew pubs will be allowed to do sampling outside if the legislation passes, and will be able to sell their beer to other bars and restaurants through a distributor. “People will also be able to own two brew pubs.”

Muller said that passing of the bill will create jobs. “If this legislation passes, we’ll hire two more people just for retail stuff and reports.”

“What exit?” jokes have been made about New Jersey for years, but Flying Fish has turned them into a popular series of beers. The company has developed beers named after New Jersey Turnpike exits.

Muller said that along with the new brewery, product changes are also in the works. “The new brewery will have Exits 6 and 16 in 12-ounce bottles year-round,” he said.

“The ESB Amber is going to be retired, and we’re replacing that with Red Fish, a smaller version of Exit 9.

“We’re trying to bottle the OktoberFish right now.”

Flying Fish heard some complaints from New Jersey’s chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving for combining roadways with beer advertising. “The Exit Series got a lot of bad press in the early days, and now we get a lot of good publicity,” Muller acknowledged. “Any time you’re dealing with alcohol, somebody’s going to have opinions.”

Muller said the new operation is ready to roll, it’s just a matter of fine-tuning the machinery. And as soon as things are worked out, Flying Fish plans to start up its popular tour series again later in the year.

“We’ve got to get the machinery running and get beer out,” he said. “There’s a lot of equipment that makes it all happen.”

–By Bob Holt / Photos by John Ziomek

The new Flying Fish Brewing Company is at 900 Kennedy Blvd. in Somerdale. For more information, visit http://flyingfish.com or call (856) 784-1351.

If you’re going to shop ­­— whether for clothing, gifts, health and beauty services or food — why not benefit the local community while indulging?

Camden County and Collingswood hope consumers will do just that when they partner for “$27 on the 27th,” a special event on Thursday in Collingswood’s downtown district. After shopping, people can stop into the party room at The Pop Shop for refreshments, light fare, giveaways and door prizes, compliments of the town’s restaurants. Reservations for the Pop Shop event can be made on the $27 on the 27th Facebook page.

“Organizers and local businesses are asking shoppers to spend at least $27 during the event. The influx of cash from hundreds of shoppers can mean a night out or new item for a family, an excellent evening for a business and have an immediate impact on the community,” said Cass Duffey, Collingswood director of communmity development.

According to the Camden County website, “If each household in Camden County transitions just $10 per month of their out-of-county retail spending to in-county spending, the economic benefit to the county would be approximately $35 million per year.”

“The ‘Buy Local’ campaign is a great way to find value and bargains in your own backyard while helping the economy grow by millions of dollars, just by increasing local spending a small percentage,” Camden County Freeholder Director Louis Cappelli Jr. says.

–By Jan L. Apple

Collingswood’s $27 on the 27th takes place Thursday from 6 to 8 p.m. The after-shopping party at the Pop Shop, 729 Haddon Ave., 7 to 8 p.m. To RSVP for the Pop Shop event, visit the $27 on the 27th Facebook page. For more information, go to www.collingswood.com or www.camdencounty.com

Not maple leaves falling from trees, but dozens of yellow school buses sidled up next to a corn field at Duffield’s Farm.

An agricultural oasis in suburbia, the 200-acre Washington Township farm entertains and educates thousands of student visitors each year.

Fall is a favorite season, when kids from Philadelphia to Atlantic City take wagon rides, pick pumpkins, jump on stacks of hay and chase each other through a mini maze.

Adults — those who come with kids and those who don’t — also enjoy farm activities from apple-picking to fine dining during the farm’s once-a-year “Feast in the Field” event.

Fun for the public at Duffield’s started 35 years ago with one very humble activity.

“School groups would come. The children would select a pumpkin from a bin,” said Tracy Duffield, who coordinates the visiting schools today. “In 1990 we started the hayrides. Now, school groups go out to the field in a wagon and pick their own pumpkins.”

The daily student visitor count is about 500 during the peak fall season. The crowd keeps 14 farm wagons rolling back and forth to the pumpkin field all day long.

“You know you have a lot of kids here when you are tripping over them,” said Duffield good-naturedly.

Kids and their adult chaperones are not the only comers to Duffield’s for fall season activities. “We’ve had a sorority from Rowan (University). We took Mom’s Red Hat Club on a hayride,” said Duffield, referring to her mother-in-law, Mary.

One recent muggy late summer day, Dawn Bruno of Wenonah was already thinking of crisp weather and all the mouth-watering autumn recipes in her cookbook.

“I do a lot of baking,” said Bruno, who visited the farm with her two children Gabriella, 8, and Vincent, 4. The family took a wagon ride out to the orchard and filled a half-bushel bag with smooth, round Gala apples.

The children also chased butterflies, wondered about a flock of wild turkeys grazing nearby, and shouted in delight when they spied giant pumpkins ripening in an adjacent field.

PumpkinLand at Duffield’s is a favorite spot for shoppers who like to use bales of hay, corn stalks, and pumpkins in their fall décor.

During October, the farm also holds make-your-own scarecrow classes every Saturday.

New Jersey promotes public participation in agritourism, these types of farm-based activities, to help farmers find ways to compete and increase profits.

Starting in 1990, agritourism began to expand at Duffield’s when the farm added hayrides for the public. But demand for even more events resulted in the addition of children’s birthday parties, Duffield said.

Today, the farm hosts 150 birthday parties during the spring and fall only. Juvenile guests play in the learning barn, feed live animals, and do the chicken dance with a costumed mascot.

“Parents will do anything to keep 25 kids out of their house,” said Duffield. “We have a motto — ‘Don’t do your house any harm; have your next party at the farm.’”

Duffield’s Farm is owned and operated by David and Mary Duffield and their three adult children, David, Dan and Debbie. It’s long been a family farm: The elder David took over from his dad in 1953.

In the early days, Duffield’s main crop was peaches, but now the farm is much more diverse, harvesting 50 different varieties of fruits and vegetables. Today, the farm sells its produce in a large indoor market that includes a bakery and deli.

Tracy Duffield uses Facebook and Twitter to let farm friends and followers know about events or when a crop is being harvested.

“Two years ago we had a really warm spring, so the corn came in early. Dad was wondering what to do, so I put it on Facebook and we sold every piece,” she said.

Some people collect antiques as a hobby. Others collect things to get in touch with a piece of history from another era.

Ron Wichowski of the new ByGone Antiques and Collectibles in Barrington has been buying and selling antiques and collectibles for most of his life.

Wichowski worked at a country club for 19 years, and was most recently a dealer at Haddon Heights Antique Center for about four years. But he says he’s always wanted to open up his own antique store.

On June 1, he did just that.

“Back in the 1970s I was doing the flea markets and Berlin auctions, and started doing some eBay about five years ago,” Wichowski related. “This is a big leap for me. It’s been a little dream of mine.”

“I like the primitive, old antique stoneware, trunks and things like that,” said his wife, Kim.

Kim noted the difference between an antique and a collectible: An antique is an item that is at least 100 years old, and a collectible is something more recent. The shop has to verify the age of the antique.

She’s looking forward to starting an antique club next month. “It would be like a book club, but with antiques. It would be something fun and educational for all of us.”

There’s always something new to learn in antiquing, Kim said. “There’s so much of an interest, and really nowhere to share it,” she noted.

The couple shares space with a unique co-op of 11 dealers, many of them seniors, with a wide range of expertise. “This generates some income to supplement theirs,” Kim said. “Our seniors are awesome, they have so much to teach us.”

“We have a great mix. One of our dealers was a flight attendant for many years, so she’s got international pieces.”

Among the other dealers are Sheila Harris-Adams, who operates Three Ladies Collectibles (fine crystal and antique and vintage china, dolls, furniture and clothing); Kate Butler, who specializes in Art Deco and Art Nouveau antiques; and June Tracy, who offers fine paintings and prints.

Among the others are Cook’s Corner, two women from Burlington with insights into antique cookware, books and more; Cindy Santore Smith, whose collection has an Italian flair; and Mac’s Trains, which features, well, trains.

Ron Wichowski finds his antiques all over. “I find them at auctions, yard sales, thrift shops, Craigslist and the like. We have a lot of stuff that we bought up in New York. There are tools, jewelry, and all kinds of different things here.”

They also make purchases from farms in New England. “We buy from estate sales, and sometimes thrift stores,” added Kim. “There’s an auction in the Berkshires of Massachusetts where my sister lives, so if we can’t go up there, she’ll go to the auction in our behalf and purchase items for us.”

A rarity in their store would be a Limoges inkwell from 1910 in excellent condition. “It’s just beautiful,” said Kim. “And I just bought a spinning wheel from the 1840s that I couldn’t resist. We have some things you’re not going to see anywhere else.”

The couple has high hopes for the store, and hopes someday it can be more than a place to buy old stuff.

“Eventually, when we build up more, my goal would be to get into the schools, and take pieces in for the history classes,” Kim said. “We would start generating an interest for the future generations.

“I always said to Ron that dreams can come true. Sometimes it’s a lot of hard work, but it’s worth it to us, and the dealers that we have.

“You only get this opportunity once in a lifetime.”

– By Bob Holt / Photos by Jose F. Moreno

ByGone Antiques will host its first monthly “Antique Show and Tell” Sept. 12 from 6 to 8 p.m. People are invited to bring a favorite antique or collectible to the shop and share its story.

ByGone Antiques and Collectibles is at 102R Clements Bridge Road in Barrington. Call (856) 617-0218 for more information, or visit www.bygoneantiques.net.